PAN Foundation launches campaign on upcoming Medicare Part D reforms

On Jan. 1, 2025, two Medicare Part D reforms will go into effect, potentially lowering out-of-pocket prescription cost for millions of Americans.

In part of educating the American people, the PAN Foundation has launched a new educational campaign to inform about the new changes to Medicare Part D cap and the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan.

The campaign starts ahead of Medicare’s open enrollment, which takes place each fall between October 15 and December 7, with the aim of helping patients and healthcare professionals understand the new reforms and their impact on patient access and affordability.

The changes

People under Medicare Part D plans won’t pay more than $2,000 over the calendar year in out-of-pocket prescription costs due to the cap reform, while those who participate in the voluntary Medicare Prescription Payment Plan are able to spread their out-of-pocket prescription drug costs throughout the calendar year but won’t lower them, according to the Foundation.

PAN believes this is the best option for those who can’t afford to pay out-of-pocket prescription costs and advises patients to sign up for the prescription payment plan at the start of the year in order to have additional time to spread out their cost.

PAN national polling

According to national polling conducted by PAN’s Center for Patient Research, most people enrolled in Medicare (87%) have not seen, read, or heard about the upcoming Medicare Part D reforms. The survey also revealed that 60% of those surveyed still had never heard of the Medicare Part D cap, even after being provided with a description of it, while 73% had never heard of the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan, even after being provided with a description of the reform.

However, the majority of those enrolled in Medicare (73%) would be interested in learning more about these upcoming changes, according to the poll.

In an interview with Access Insider, Amy Niles, chief mission officer at the PAN Foundation, discusses the new campaign, Medicare Part D reforms, and why there is a need for patient-focused education.

Given the national poll showing low awareness, how critical is this campaign for ensuring patients benefit from the upcoming Medicare Part D reforms?

Nearly 9 in 10 people surveyed (87 percent) had not seen, read, or heard anything about the upcoming Medicare Part D reforms. This is alarming and shows the critical need for a national education campaign.

The two provisions going into effect on Jan. 1, 2025, will help people taking prescription drugs to experience lower annual out-of-pocket costs due to the Part D cap of $2,000. They also offer an option for people to pay their prescription drug costs monthly, through the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan.

Millions of Medicare beneficiaries will benefit from these changes. As Medicare Open Enrollment approaches, many people are evaluating their coverage and selecting new plans. Without awareness of these reforms, they may not be able to factor these benefits into their evaluation. And, patients who have previously gone without treatment due to high out-of-pocket costs especially need this information.

Without a greater investment in education, these patients may not know that it may be easier for them to start and stay on treatment in 2025 and beyond.

With the reforms taking effect in 2025, does the PAN Foundation have plans to extend this campaign beyond the initial launch to ensure continued awareness?

The PAN Foundation is committed to continuing our education efforts about the Medicare reforms beyond the initial campaign this fall. While our goal is to reach as many people as possible across the U.S. in the next few months with this important information, we know that it will take continued outreach and education to reach the 87% of Medicare beneficiaries who hadn’t previously heard about these reforms.

Education is a key pillar of our mission to accelerate access to affordable, equitable healthcare—and this topic is one we’ll continue to stay focused on.

How do you envision these reforms impacting the lives of the people enrolled in Medicare and the overall healthcare landscape?

The impact of these reforms in expanding access to treatment for millions of people cannot be understated. Before the Part D cap of $2,000, we heard from patients daily that they were often facing annual prescription drug costs of many thousands of dollars per year—forcing people to make impossible choices between essentials like housing and groceries and their treatment. While $2,000 annually can still be a burdensome amount to pay out-of-pocket—and we know there will continue to be a high need for charitable financial assistance—it is a step in the right direction.

The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan is also an enormous help for patients who face high up-front out-of-pocket costs at the beginning of the year, by allowing them to spread their costs throughout the year.

Can you go into more detail about the resources that will be provided through this campaign?

We have developed educational resources for this campaign that incorporate best health literacy practices and support a wide range of learning styles and outreach channels. First, the PAN Foundation has created a user-friendly and easy-to-navigate Medicare educational hub on panfoundation.org – with both an English-language hub and Spanish-language version, so that people can get the information in their preferred language. To date, we’ve already had 125,000 visitors to the hub. For this campaign, we’ve worked to expand the information included in it, especially around the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan.

We’ve also developed two explainer videos, in English and Spanish. These videos break down the Medicare Part D reforms in an easy-to-understand way, empowering patients with the key information they need to make decisions during this open enrollment period and beyond.

We’ve also created printed booklets explaining the reforms to distribute at events and in communities.

The PAN Foundation will be hosting a webinar in November for patients, advocates, healthcare professionals, and anyone else to learn more about the reforms as well as how to navigate financial assistance.

Finally, I will be participating in over 25 interviews nationally as part of a radio media tour on October 16—to get the word out to as many people as possible across the U.S.

How will the PAN Foundation measure the success of this campaign?

Ultimately, success looks like moving the needle on awareness of the Medicare Part D reforms so that people can make empowered decisions about their healthcare.

With nearly 9 in 10 patients reporting they haven’t heard about the Medicare reforms in fall 2024, the goal is to see that number significantly decrease—with the percentage of patients who report awareness of the reforms expanding.

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